How much do you really know about Shakespeare and his plays? William Shakespeare is widely regarded as the most excellent writer in the English language. He is credited by the Oxford English Dictionary with the introduction of nearly 3,000 words to the English language. To trivia or not to trivia. That is the question. So challenge yourself or play together with your friends and family! Test your knowledge with this Shakespeare Trivia Quiz and learn some amazing facts about one of the greatest writers.
Τake a look at the list of questions below. Click on the button to reveal the answer and some related information. Keep going until you’ve answered them all. Enjoy your quiz and good luck!
1. Which university did William Shakespeare enroll in?
None
Brilliant playwright and author William Shakespeare never attended any university.
2. Shakespeare’s shortest play had 1,787 lines. What was it called?
The Comedy of Errors
With 1,787 lines and 14,369 words, it was his shortest play overall. His shortest tragedy was Macbeth with 1993 lines.
3. When was Shakespeare born?
1564
4. Shakespeare is rumored to have performed a role in the original production of “Hamlet.” What role was that?
The Ghost
Nicholas Rowe reported about a hundred years after Shakespeare’s death that he had heard about Shakespeare playing the Ghost in the original production of Hamlet. Even though there is little evidence to support it, it is a theory that still stands today.
5. In the final scene of Romeo and Juliet, who dies first?
Romeo
Even though Juliet appears to have died first, she is in a deep drug-induced sleep. When Romeo finds her in this state, he decides to take his life out of grief. However, when Juliet awakens and finds her beloved’s body, she joins him in death.
6. Which character from the play “Julius Caesar” said: “Cowards die many times before their deaths”?
Julius Caesar
The exact phrase was: “Cowards die many times before their deaths; The valiant never taste of death but once.”
7. How many Plays did Shakespeare write?
37
8. How many of Shakespeare’s original scripts have survived?
Zero
Mainly because many of his scripts were written hastily for stage purposes, none of Shakespeare’s original scripts have survived the test of time.
9. How many of Shakespeare’s plays were published before his death?
Eighteen
Before the publication of the First Folio, nineteen of the thirty-seven plays by Shakespeare had appeared in quarto format. The editors of the First Folio branded all the quartos fraudulent, stating that readers had been cheated by “diverse stolen and surreptitious copies.” Of these quartos, all but Othello were published before Shakespeare’s retirement.
10. In the play “Hamlet,” who is the murderer of Hamlet’s father?
Claudius
Claudius was Hamlet’s uncle who murdered his brother in order to seize the throne, marrying his deceased brother’s widow in the process.
11. Which of Shakespeare’s well-known characters asks the following: “What’s in a name?”
Juliet
In the play “Romeo and Juliet,” Juliet says: “What’s in a name? That which we call a rose, by any other name, would smell as sweet.”
12. How many Sonnets did Shakespeare write?
154
13. In the play “The Two Gentlemen of Verona,” what is the name of Launce’s dog?
Crab
Launce is the clownish servant of Proteus. He owns a dog named Crab, who has been appointed the title of “the most scene-stealing non-speaking role.”
14. How old was Shakespeare when he wrote his first play?
25
Most academics agree that Shakespeare wrote his first play roughly around 1590. He was 25 years old at the time, and his first play was Henry VI, Part One.
15. What was Shakespeare’s last play?
The Two Noble Kinsmen
It is believed to have been written in 1613 when Shakespeare was 49 years old.
16. How many people committed suicide in “Antony and Cleopatra”?
Five
Mark Antony, Cleopatra, Iras, Charmian, and Eros
17. In “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” what is the name of the King of the Fairies?
Oberon
He rules the fairies alongside his wife, Titania.
18. Which of Shakespeare’s characters says: “There is no evil angel but Love”?
Don Adriano de Armado
In “Love’s Labour’s Lost,” Don Adriano de Armado says: “Love is a familiar; Love is a devil: there is no evil angel but Love.”
19. What is the name of the clown in “Measure for Measure”?
Pompey
He is a clown and servant to Mistress Overdone. Harold Bloom describes him as “a triumph of Shakespeare’s art.”
20. Who kills Mercutio in “Romeo and Juliet”?
Tybalt
Tybalt is the one that kills Mercutio shortly before he is killed himself by Romeo.
21. How was Shakespeare’s wife called?
Anne
William Shakespeare married Anne Hathaway, in 1582, at the age of eighteen. However, she was eight years older than him, and very little is known about their marriage.
22. Which of Shakespeare’s plays is the biggest bloodbath?
Titus Andronicus
Thought to be Shakespeare’s first tragedy. It features every form of brutal act you can imagine. It features fourteen body counts in its’ five acts.
23. Which of Shakespeare’s plays is thought to be cursed?
Macbeth
Some actors believe that Macbeth is cursed, thus never speaking its name out loud. Instead, it is referred to as “The Scottish Play.” It is said that if you call its name aloud in a theatre, then disaster would follow.